


Chapter Three - Alternate Version

by 12AngryHighlanders



Series: Growth [2]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Bumblebee - Freeform, Bumbleby - Freeform, Canon Compliant Through Volume Five, F/F, Fluff, Heart-to-Heart, Romance, White Rose - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-10
Updated: 2018-04-10
Packaged: 2019-04-21 00:55:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,454
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14273433
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/12AngryHighlanders/pseuds/12AngryHighlanders
Summary: The original version of the third chapter of "Growth," with an added epilogue of sorts. Tonally dissonant from the rest of the fic, but I couldn't let it go to waste!





	Chapter Three - Alternate Version

**Author's Note:**

> If you haven't read up to this point in "Growth," this probably won't make much sense, but feel free to just read it as a generic "get-together" conversation!

“Yang, I really care about you. You’re my best friend, and I can’t tell you how important to me you are. The thing is, you’re special to me, I just don’t know if we’d…I mean, I’m not sure I –”

“Don’t do that.” Yang’s voice was quiet, but firm. Her chest felt heavy, her stomach leaden, but a calmer part of her was keeping the sudden, shooting despair in check. After all, it wasn’t surprising. But expecting this to happen didn’t make the reality any easier. She was surprised to find that her mechanical hand was trembling, like the phantom of her lost arm was shaking but now had an outlet, such as it was. She grabbed it with her left hand, holding it down.

“Save the whole ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ routine. It’s not like you owe me anything, and I don’t want pity. It’s okay. I wasn’t expecting you to suddenly realize you’d loved me the whole time and for things to just work out. You can tell me you don’t feel the same way – I can handle it.” She was almost sure it wasn’t a lie. Her eyes burned with the need to cry, but no tears came. _No need to make this harder for her_. She made sure to keep her gaze steady as she waited for a reply.

For her part, Blake looked nonplussed. “No, it’s not – that’s not what I meant! I mean, I guess it sort of is, but…Yang, I’m trying to say I don’t think I’m…” She trailed off, looking expectantly at Yang. What was she supposed to say? She tried to think of the most Blake-like thing she could.

“…you’re not interested in dating because you’re so focused on the mission and you think it’s childish that anyone could be considering something like that?” Man, she hoped that last part wasn’t too on-the-nose. Blake visibly winced.

“No, Yang, I mean I’m not sure I’m…” She was blushing now, trying to gesture something. But it was mostly just waving her hands around Yang’s body. Specific, hard-to-miss parts of it. Yang guessed again, although she was pretty sure she couldn’t be right.

“...well-endowed enough? Blake, you’re _beautiful_ , I wouldn’t change anything –”

“Gay!” Blake practically shouted, her face bright red. She buried her face in her hands. “I’m sorry, it’s got nothing to do with you, I haven’t even…Yang. Yang, what are you doing?”

Yang couldn’t help it. She was snorting with laughter.

“Blake, you _cannot_ be serious!”

“I – what?”

“If it weren’t for Weiss and Ruby, you’d be, like, the gayest person I’ve ever met.”

Blake seemed to be deciding whether she was shocked, offended, or some combination of the two. Yang held her hands up in a pacifying gesture.

“Hey, I’m sorry, I should never tell somebody what they like or don’t, it’s just...you really don’t think you’re attracted to women?”

“I mean – the only person I’ve ever been involved with was a guy,” she said, as if that proved anything.

“So? You can like both.”

“I know you can!”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“There isn’t one!” Yang sighed. Blake was being stubborn. New tactic.

“Blake. Can you really tell me you’ve never had thoughts about a girl, y’know… _those_ thoughts?”

The deep crimson of the faunus’ face told Yang her answer, even as the black-clad girl was attempting to stammer out a reply. She smiled softly.

“If you don’t feel the way about me that I do about you, that’s okay. But Blake, please…you don’t have to be dishonest with me, or with yourself.”

“It’s not that, I promise! I’m not trying to get out of the conversation, it’s just…” She hesitated. “Yang, I think…I think I like _you_.” _Wait – you do?_ “But I’m just not sure how I feel about women. I’ve never been with one, never done anything more than have the occasional thoughts about it while –” She somehow flushed even more, stopping herself short.

“Is everyone a child but me? Honestly, Blake, you can say _masturbating_.” Apparently, she couldn’t, as what could generously be described as a squeak was all that came out of her. Yang was smiling, her heart pounding, her thoughts going a mile a minute. _She’s not uncertain. She’s afraid. I can help with that._ She forced her face into a serious expression, suppressing the giddiness bubbling inside her.

“Blake…I think you’re scared. You’ve been hurt, the only relationship you’ve had was awful, I don’t blame you for being afraid to get into another one. But maybe, right now, part of you wants to, and the only way you can protect yourself is by not being _able_ to be with me. If I’m wrong, tell me. I don’t want to tell you how you feel, especially about this.” There was a long pause, and Blake slowly shook her head.

“You aren’t wrong,” she whispered, eyes focused on her lap.

Yang took a breath. This was going to be a gamble. “Realizing something like that about yourself? It’s a leap, Blake. A big one. But we can take it together, if you want to. I can try help you figure things out.”

Blake looked up. She seemed to try and steady herself, her hands fidgeting with each other. “What did you have in mind?”

Yang’s voice was soft. “The first step’s the hardest. I…I could take it for you.”

And there it was. _She’s smart. The smartest person I know. Maybe I can’t say it, maybe she can’t say it, but neither of us are confused about what I’m offering._

And, after a long moment, Blake spoke.

“Please?”

Yang tensed. _This is happening. Okay. Don’t panic._ “Promise me, _promise_ me, that you’ll say something the second things don’t feel right?” Blake nodded. Her eyes were wide, and Yang was paradoxically reassured by how nervous she looked. At least she wasn’t the only one. And yet…

Yang grinned as she slid closer. She was terrified. But after all the stress, all the tension, then the patently ridiculous statement that Blake wasn’t interested in women…well, she wouldn’t be Yang Xiao Long if she didn’t do _some_ teasing. For a moment, she felt like her old self, and she wasn’t going to let that slip away.

“So you’re saying,” she murmured, her voice soft and sultry, “that when I do _this_ ,” her left arm wound its way around Blake’s waist, her right cupping the other girl’s cheek, “you don’t feel _anything_?” Blake gulped loudly.

“I – I mean, not _nothing_ …”

“And when I do this,” Blake gasped as Yang suddenly pulled her closer, their foreheads touching, noses brushing gently against each other, “you’re telling me your heart doesn’t beat any faster?” Now she was having fun. Seducing a beautiful girl while simultaneously making fun of her? Yang was in her _element_!

Blake’s breath hitched. Her hands were now gripping Yang’s shoulders like a vice. There was certainly no mention of stopping. Yang felt her own heart hammering in her chest. All else aside, there was no getting around the fact that she’d wanted what was coming next for so, so long. It would’ve been hard to believe this was reality, if it weren’t for Blakes firm hands, her warm breath, her intoxicating scent.

“And when I do this,” her head began to tilt, and she leaned in, “you mean you wouldn’t give anything to know what it feels like for me to close the distance?” Blake’s response, this time, was perfectly predictable, as she repeated her earlier request:

“Yang… _please_.”

The blonde needed no further urging as her lips found her partner’s, passion pouring out of her as she gripped Blake tight, opening her mouth to the girl she loved again and again.

\--------------------------

Yang walked into Ruby’s room, where she found the two holding each other on the bed. Blake had insisted on a cold shower following their…conversation, and Yang thought if she’d offered to join she might’ve killed the poor girl. She couldn’t help but smirk. _Screw you, Remnant. We’ll find our own ways to be happy_. Weiss raised an eyebrow.

“I take it things went well?”

Yang nodded, unable to stop smiling. “It took some doing. She didn’t think she was into girls.”

They both sat bolt upright.

“What?” Ruby looked like someone had told her the sky was green. “But she’s, like, super gay!”

Weiss nodded sagely. “The gayest.”

“Well, after us,” Ruby admitted with a slight blush.

“Oh, Blake. What a useless lesbian,” Weiss muttered.

“And that’s _Weiss_ saying that!”

“Hey!”

Yang just shrugged. “I don’t know what to tell you. Some people just don’t realize how great women are.” She sighed. “Poor bastards.” The other two could only nod.


End file.
